Alcohol-- even wine-- harms

I was glad there was coverage of some of the consequences of drunk driving– and facts about tougher DUI laws. [September 9 cover story: "Confessions of a Drunk Driver."]

As I was reading the story, I could have predicted future disaster when the words "responsible" and "social drinking" were used together.

The media is lax in its reporting about the dangers of light and moderate alcohol use. Among the consequences of "just one" drink are impaired mental and physical capabilities, judgment, concentration, restraint, and reaction time. This, then, negatively affects everything one does and says for many hours after that drink.

Medical literature warns that two hours of waiting to drive after drinking alcohol is not enough. It may actually take six hours. Individuals cannot think clearly after drinking alcohol– even the next day (Clinical and Experimental Research). The brain is still anesthetized long after the BAC has returned to zero.

The negative news about alcohol rarely gets to the public– except to say that "too much" is bad for your health. Few people, including health professionals, are aware that in 2000 our government declared alcoholic beverages to be a Class A human carcinogen– along with arsenic, asbestos, benzene, and tobacco. And the American Institute for Cancer Research warns that alcohol is a tumor-promoter– and that cancer risk is increased by drinking any amount of alcohol.

We still hear about the "French Paradox" to promote wine use even though it was disproved years ago because of faulty data. I feel it is important that the public hear the truth about issues like these that affect their health, so I make it available on my website, jrussellshealth.com.

I hope it will encourage your readers to question the pro-alcohol media's selective reporting.